Metallic shelving.



. B. ULRICH.

METALLIC SHELVING.

APPLICATiON FILED APR 6,1915

Patented Apr. 2, 1918.

C. B. ULRICH.

METALLIC SHELVING.

APPLICATION mw Ams. Isls.

Patented Apr. 2,1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2 C. B. ULRICH.

METALLIC SHELVING.

APPLrcAnon HLED APR.6.1915.

1,261,654. Patented Apr. 2, 1918,

, 3 shams-SHEET 3.

UNTED STATES CHARLES B. ULRICH', OF HOUGHTON,

PATENT OFFICE.

MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO ART METAL CONSTRUC- TION COMPANY, OF JAMESTOMVN, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION 0F MASSACHUSETTS.

METALLIC SHELVING.

To @ZZ olio/fi t may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES B. ULHICH, :t citizen of the United States, residing at Houghton, in the county of Houghton and Stute of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Metallic Shelving, of which the following is a spoolcation.

This' invention relatesl to shelving Mld more` particularly to, metallic shelving.

While the present irwentionis of general application, it is particularly designed for the support and storage o boxes, iov. in.- stance, shoe boxes to the: retail trade, and it is an important object of thc pia-osent invention to obtain the maximum. Stor-'ogs ca pacity, and at the same time to provide a stnon rigid und; durable structure which may ge conveniently set zip-and mmntmned in a tight, sind. rigid condition.,

The shelving may be put up in sections of :my desired len h andheight, and may be comveaicntly ad .'dto, as may b requiised from time to time without dismantling? or otherwise: interfering with. thesection or sections already set up..

With. these and other objects im View., the present invention consists in the com binatioxr and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter more fully described, shown inthe drawings, and particularly set foctlr in the appended claims.,4 it being understood that changes inthe form, proportion, sizeand minor details moy be made, within the scopo o the claims. without de zitting from: the' spirit or sacrificing any othe advanf tages oi the invention.

In, the drawings,

Figure 1i' is o fragnumtary perspective view of shelving embodying features o the' present invention.

Fig;` 2 is an enlarged detail cross-sectional View on the lino 2f-2 of Fig. 1-.

Figc 3 is a fmgmentury View of an up eight showing :sr` pair of openingsthorcin for tho reception o Shel-ii members.

F ig. 4 is a. dctaii'lsectionol View on theA lino Lw-4 of Fig'. 1, showingY one foi-'m of means flor anchoring a. shelf tol asn end. upright.

ligY 5 is :t detail perspective view of one ot the anchor devices employed inV Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a detail plan section taken Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 2, 1918.

Serial No. 19,591.

through an upright in the plaine of the upper face of a shelf, as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

Fig. 7 is an end View illustrating an anchor device of the type shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. S is an end view illustrating another manner of anchoring a shelf.

F ig.4 9 is a detailsectiona-l View on the line 9 9 @f Fig. 8.

Figa 10 is :t v iew similar to Fig. '2 and shqwmg zt modified form of shelf.

F 11 is an elevation of a portion of nu upright having an opening to accommodate the form. of shelf shown iu Fig. 1,0..

Fig., 12 1s, a View similar to Fig. 6, and showng the. form of shelf employed in 11g: 13, is a detail fragmentary tive view illustrating the manner.' es helf toan upm lit.

Fig. 14 1s an en view. illustrating another for?? oi anchoring ns for the end. of e s e Eig... L5 an end. view showinganother fosrn of anchoring means.

6' is a. view similar toe Fig.. 4, show ing a form of anchor device as employed, with the form of shelf shown in.

esi-spec` keying Fig. 1U. Fig. 17 is a. detailv horizontal 'sectional View taken thnoughthc end upright of adjacent shelvin sections.

Fi ..18 is a.. otoil view of on end of ai shelf inem er as employed in Fig. 14 of the draw ig. 19 is a detail sectional View of another embodiment of shelf. y

Like characters of reference `elesi-ginlte corresponding parts in. each of the several 5g uros of the drawings.

As best shown in Fig. l oi the drawings, it will. be seen that the present shelving mf cludes, generally. a base A,.upr'ig-l1ts B', and Shelves C. The basemay be of anyconunou or prciorred partv of the presentinvention, which tion involves the shelrf construction and the manner of connecting the shelf. with. the up.- rights so as to tio together the uprifghts and shelves ino simple and economical manner and to provide e sti-'ong and rigid structure.

The form of shelf employed in- Fig, L, is shown in detail in Figs. 2, 6 and 13. As

construction1 as it forms no best illuslrated in Fig. 2, it will be seen that this form of shelf includes front and rear shelf members D and E, and a third member in thc form of a cover plate C. The front and rear shelf members are duplicates in construction and mounting, and therefore a description of one of them will be suilicient. Each shelf member is ol a length to extend across several uprights and is a single metallic strip or plate, having a longitudinal rib 1 struck dow uwardly therefrom throughout its entire length and disposed substantially midway between its front and rear edges. Besides stifening the shelf member, this rib has another function, as will` be hereinafter explained. The rear edge or side 2 of the rib is disposed at substantially right angles to the plane of the shelf and constitutes a depending abrupt shoulder or abutment, while the front edge portion 3 of the rib inclines upwardly and forwardly and merges into the body of the plate at an obtuse angle, so as to form a beveled front face or edge. As clearly shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings, each upright B is provided with front and rear slots or openings F and G. Each of these slots or openings is disosed in a substantially horizontal position, is of a shape correspondin to the cross-sectional shape of one of the slielf members, and has a length slightly exceeding the width of the shelf members. As the two front and rear shelf members are intended to support the same cover plate, it is of course apparent that the slots or openings are in the same horizontal plane.

In assembling the shelving, the uprights are placed in position and the shelf members are driven endvvise through the alined slots or openings in the uprights, and then keys, such as shown at 4, in Figs. 6, 12 and 13 are driven into the respective slots or openings in the uprights, so as to bear against the shoulders 2 of the shelf members and the shoulders 5 of the slots, whereby the shelf members will be driven edgewise toward the front of the structure. By reference to Fig. 6 of the drawings, it will be Vseen that the front edge of each shelf member is provided With a slit or notch 6 which receives the front edge of the opening in the upright, whereby the shelf member is interlocked with each upright and held against endwise movement. The shelf member may be readily loosened preparatory to removing it from the structure merely by driving out the keys. Inasmuch as the ribs 1 of the shelf members are on the under sides of the members, the keys are hidden from view. The beveled or inclined front edge portions 3 of the ribs facilitate the introduction of boxes, for the reason that such inclined portions do not offer abrupt obstructions to the upper edges of the boxes when being thrust into a compartment defined by adjacent shelves and adjacent. upright lf the rear end portion of the cover of a box has been elevated by the action of grasping the top and bottom of the box at the front thereof, the cam surfaces 3 will engage and force the lid or cover down to its normal position and thereby insure that the lids or covers will be in their proper closed positions.

XVhile the spaced shelf [numbers l) and ll might serve for sonic purposes without a cover plate, I prefer to employ the cover plate C which is of relatively thin sheet metal having its front and rear edges benl downwardly to form substantially U-shaped beads or hooked portions 7 and 8, best indicated in Fig. 2 of the drawings, said open beads or hooked portions embracing the front edge of the front shelf member D and the rear edge of the rear shelf member l, respectively. It will be understood that the cover plate is of a length to extend between adjacent uprights only, and is fitted in place before the front shelf member is driven to its final position by the introduction of the key 4, which driving forward of the front shelf member stretches the cover plate into a taut rigid condition and maintains the cover plate in this condition so long as the key remains in place.

In Figs. 10 and 11 of the drawings, I have shown a shelf member H, which is composed of a single sheet of metal and has front and rear depending longitudinally extending ribs 9 and 10, of exactly the saine cross'sectional shape as the ribs 1 shown in Fi 2. Instead of having separate slots F an G, as in Fig. 2, there is a single slot J, the middle portion of which is straight and connects terminal portions F and G of the same confifruration as the slots F and G in Fig. 3. The difference between Fig. 2 and Fig. 10 is that Fig. 2 shows two separate shelf members and a cover plate, whereas Fig. 10 shows a single shelf member which is the full Width of the shelf and has two de pending longitudinally-extending ribs.

Another embodiment of the shelf has been shown in Fig. 19 of the drawings, wherein the difference over the form shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings resides in the fact that the cover plate extends to the back wall 11 of the shelving and is provided with a downturned flange 12` preferably corrugated and driven down between the back of the structure and the opstanding corrugated lip of an angle bracket 13 spot-welded or otherwise secured to the back 11. By this construction. the shelf may be made wide enough to extend clear back to the back plate 11, it of course being necessary to anchor the rear edge portion of the cover plate in order to hold the same when the cover plate is being stretched by the driving of the wedges `l at the front of the structure.

By having the shelves terminate short of lll] llo

the front and back of the structure, a considerable amount of meta-l may be saved, and there is less opportunity for the lodgment of dust and dirt at the back edge ofthe shelf.

At the end of a section of shelving, each shelf member of course extendsv into its slet or opening in the upright, but of course terminates flush with the outer face of the upright, and some means must be provided to hold or anchor the shelf member in place. One form of anchoring means has been shown in Figs. 4 and 5, consisting of a plate 11 provided upon its upper edge with a pair of dove-tailed lugs or tenons bent at substantially right angles to the plate and occupying similarly shaped notches or recesses 13 in the adjacent end of the shelfmember. The plate 11 of course lies on the outer face of the upright, and being interloclred with the shelf member, saidl plate effectually anchors the shelf member in place. This anchor plate, of course, moves endwise with the shelf member when the latter4 is moved by the introduction of the Wedges, so that the anchor plate does not interfere With the insertion of the keys.

In the form of shelf shown in Figs. 1 and 2, two anchor plates are employed at the end of the shelf, one'for each shelf member, While a. single anchor plate, of the proper length, is suihcient for the form of shelf shown in Fig. 10, such an anchor dplate being shown at 14 in Fig. 16 of the raivings. Two separate anchor plates are required for the form of shelf shown in Fi 2, for the reason that the shelf members Vand E are separately keyed in place, and consequently the anchor members must move with their respective shelf members, While in Fig. 16 there is only one shelf member, and consequently a single anchor device is suiiicient,

In Figs. 14 and 18, I have shown another form of anchor device for the end of a shelf member, wherein the end of the shelf member is provided With two pairs of ears 15 and 16, which are passed through the slot or opening in the adjacent upright and then bent in'opposite directions against the outer face of the upright.

Still another form of anchoring means has been shown in Figs, 8 and 9 of the drawings, wherein the shelf member is provided with a plurality of ears 17 lying in the plane of the member and perforated to receive pins or keys 18 driven downwardly throufrh the ears and on the outer face of the upright.

In Fig. 15, another embodiment of anehoring means has been shown. In this figure, the shelf member is provided With a plurality 0f terminal depending ears 19, and the upright is provided with a notch or opening 20 of a size to receive the ear 19 therethrough in order that the ear 19 may be located upon the outeiface of the upright. When the keys t are driven into place and the shelf member is shifted forwardly, the ear or ears 19 will alsebe moved forwardly out ef alinement with the adje cent opening, whereby the u right and the shelf member will be interlbcked against separation.

lhen two shelving sections are brought endV to end, as shown in Fig. 1T of the drawings, the anchor devices will register and space the end uprights, and therefore I propose to employ a ier strip 21 between the front portions of the uprights so as to close the space therebetween and present a neat and finished appearance. This filler strip may beheld in place in any suitable manner, such for instance as by screws, one of which has been shown at 22. The rear edge portions of the uprights may be connected in any suitable manner, as by a bolt 23.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim, isz- 1. Metallic shelving comprising spaced plate metal uprights having corresponding substantially horizontal slots extending transversely thereof, a plate metal shelf member extending through the slots and having an offset portion, and keys in the slots, each key engaging an edge of a slot and the offset ortion of the shelf member to Wedge said s` elf member edgewise in the slot.

2. Metallic shelvin comprising spaced plate metal uprightslliaving corresponding substantially horizontal slots extending transversely thereof and provided with shouldered portions, a pfate metal shelf member extending through the slots of the uprights and having an offset portion disposed in alinement With the shoulders of the slots, and keys in the slots, each key engaging the shoulder of the slot and the oset portion of the shelf member to Wedge the latter edgevvise in the slot..

3. Metal shelving comprising a series of plate metal uprights having corresponding openings therein, each opening being provided With a shoulder, ashelf member extendin through said openings, and keys driven etween the shoulders of the openings and the shelf member to Wedge the latter in the openings.

4. Metal shelving comprising a series of plate metal uprights having corresponding openings therein, each opening having an intermediate downward extension providing an upstanding shoulder, a shelf member extending through the openings and provided with a longitudinal depending rib, and keys driven between the respective shoulders and the rib to Wedge the shelf member in the openings.

5. Metal Shelving comprising a series of plate metal uprights having corresponding openings therein, a shelf member extending through said openings and notched at one edge to receive the respective uprights, and keys driven into the openings and holding the shelf member in position.

6. Metal shelving comprising plate metal uprights having corresponding openings therein, each opening having an intermediate downward extension, the rear wall of the extension constituting an upright shoulder, the front Wall of the extension being inclined upwardly at an obtuse angle, a shelf member extending through the openings and provided with a depending longitudinal rib of a shape corresponding to the shape of the extension of the openings of less Width than said extension, and keys driven in between the upright shoulders and the rib to wedge the shelf member in place.

7 Metal shelving comprising a series of plate metal uprights having corresponding openings therein, a plate metal shelf member havin a depending longitudinal rib struck there rom, each opening having a downward extension, the shelf member extending through the openings with its rib in the extension thereof, and keys driven into the extensions ol the openings and engaging the rib to Wedge the shelf member in place.

8. Metal shelving comprising a series of plate metal uprights having corresponding openings therein, a shelf member extending through the openings and shiftable laterally therein, a cover plate anchored at one edge and engaged at its other edge with the shelf member, and wedges driven into the openings to shift the shelf member and tighten the cover plate.

9. Metal shelving comprisin a series of plate metal uprights provide( with front and rear corresponding openings, shelf members extending through the respective front and rear openings, wedge members driven into the openings and holding the shelf members in place, and a cover plate connected to the shelf members and covering the liops thereof and held taut by the shelf memers.

10. Metal shelving colnprising an end upright provided with an opening, a shelf member having a portion lying in the opening, and an anchor plate upon the outer face of the upright, there being a dove-tailed mortise and tenon joint between the anchor plate and the adjacent end of the shelf mem- 11. Metal shelving comprising an end upright having an opening therein, a. shelf member having a portion lying in the openin and provided with a terminal dovetailed notch, and an anchor plate on the exterior of the upright and provided with a dove-tailed tenon lying in the notch of the shelf.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature in presence of tWo- Witnesses.

CHARLES B. ULRICH.

Witnesses:

A. A. EGE, H. S. SHEPABD.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of ZPatents. Washington, D. 0. 

